The Absolution of the Golden Witch
by Phoebeus
Summary: So much of the tragedy of 1986 hangs on the fact that Battler abandoned the family in 1980 and did not return for six years. But what if he had come back sooner? What if, for instance, he had rejoined the Ushiromiya in 1984? Would that have changed anything? What might the catbox have been with a little twist in fate?
1. The Witch's Letter

**OCTOBER 4th, 1986**  
 **Rokkenjima Island**

 _Greetings,_

 _I welcome you to Rokkenjima in the name of Ushiromiya Kinzo. I am his chosen representative, Beatrice._

 _Many years ago, I granted Kinzo-sama great wealth, and since that day I have acted as he willed. But the time has long passed for me to step down and leave this island. I have been formally released from service by Kinzo-sama, and he has returned all I have given him, including the seal of the One Winged Eagle used to seal this letter._

 _By the original contract, my last task should be to test those gathered here today. If you had failed, none would have been left alive, but if one had managed to solve the Goldsmith's riddle, I would have gifted you all of the gold I granted him, along with my congratulations._

 _Alas, though no one has come forward to claim their prize, the riddle has already been solved, and the gold has been scattered to the winds._

 _By all rights, your lives are mine._

 _But it does not soundly fulfill my contract with the Goldsmith to leave things at this. As such, I have taken the liberty to change the rules- for your benefit._

 _I have a new trial for you, descendants of gold. A trial not of the mind, but of the heart._

 _Many of you present hold a darkness inside of you, secrets you leave to fester in your heart. Secrets that will blacken your souls, yet that seems the better choice when the alternative is letting the world see you for what you are._

 _I will take those secrets in payment for gold._

 _Thirteen of you will be chosen, and when you have been selected you must assemble everyone before my portrait and confess your sin. Confess, and repent. Everyone present, in turn, must find it in their hearts to forgive you._

 _If you can offer me your thirteen confessions before the stroke of midnight tomorrow, you will all share in the riches that follow._

 _If you cannot, then all you shall share is a grave._

 _I pray this exercise brings the Ushiromiya family happiness and peace._

 _\- The Golden Witch Beatric_ e


	2. October 13th, 1984 (1)

**OCTOBER 13** **th** **, 1984  
** **Rokkenjima Island**

"Uu- Uu- Falling! Falling!"

"Haha- 'Falling!' 'Falling!'"

"Aaaa, cut it out! Maria! Ange!"

"Pfft- Serves you right!" Jessica crowed from somewhere behind Battler as he dashed up the steps. He scooped up both of the screeching younger girls in his arms, their cries and his cries and Jessica's calls and their laughter all tripping one over the other in a bright screech of sound. "After teasing Maria-chan so horribly like that, she and Ange are giving you your just desserts!"

"Eeeeeh?" Battler made an abrupt turnabout, earning a surprised hiccup from Ange from her place on his shoulder as he leered back at Jessica. "In that case, how do I get to get back at you for teasing me?"

"-EH?!" Jessica ruffled up instantly at the prod, earning a snicker from Battler that only ruffled her the more. But before she could properly retort, a hand came down on her shoulder.

"Ha… We shouldn't yell here- The house is just ahead," George said, an amused smile beneath his kind reminder- The rebuke much softer than the sharp yell that came back at them from ahead.

"Hey! If you kids keep messing around we'll leave you behind!"

The mirth dancing on Battler's face died down, and he glared at his father's retreating back… But the sight he could see just beyond Rudolf and the rest of the adults quickly ate away at his irritation.

He climbed the last few stairs with short, slow steps as Maria wriggled out of his grip. He let her go as he went, but Ange remained, turning in her brother's arms to see what Battler gawked at.

"Woooow! Look at that, Ange!"

"Pretty…!" the girl called in a soft coo, craning around all the more to get a better look at the cultivated field of roses spread out before them. "Flowers!"

"Yeah, there must be hundreds of them!"

"Uh-huh, I remember!"

Yes, Battler thought with a belated righting of his place in reality, she would. For Ange had been there last year… And the years before that, even if her young mind had lost the memory of those earliest trips.

Ange's memory of Rokkenjima Island before 1983 was likely no more than a fog… Just as it was for Battler. It had been a lot longe since he last set foot in that garden.

Four years, to be exact.

And once again an awkward pang hit him with the thought- The same sort of feeling that had struck him multiple times throughout the day already. Meeting his kind aunts and uncle again, seeing how mature George was and how big Maria had gotten, running Jessica on the dock and discovering she was far more of girl than he could ever recall- It was all a strange mesh of rediscovering a world just as he had left it, yet so changed.

They had all welcomed him, though, with warmth and cheer, and for the first time Battler had reason beyond regular close contact with his baby half-sister to be glad he had returned home to take the Ushiromiya name.

It hadn't really been his idea, after all. He had agreed, but only reluctantly, and he knew his Dad and Kyrie and probably everyone else knew it. He had only done it to relieve his grandmother – his mother's mother – of the need to support him.

She was sick and needed care of her own, but after grandfather had that heart attack out of nowhere late that summer, it had been just Battler and her. She had been ill a long time, and they had all always acted around the belief that she would predecease her husband. It grieved him to live with that idea, but Battler had at least known he would have a second home for as long as his grandfather lived.

It didn't work the other way around. An invalid lady and her high schooler grandson couldn't support themselves all on their own.

And Battler hadn't asked it of her. His grandmother had a little sister who could take care of her, if only Battler was out of the picture.

And so, at Grandfather's funeral, when his father tried again to apologize for what he did to Mom, begged him to come home… Battler accepted him.

What else could he do? It was the only option, and he resigned himself to that when he moved in with Dad and Kyrie and Ange last month.

But, walking among his relatives right then, back before the family home of his childhood?

Battler was finding reason after reason to regret not coming back sooner.

"Ah- Look! It's my parents!"

Jessica's call as she rushed by knocked Battler loose from his thoughts, and he belatedly notice the figures coming out of the great house.

He couldn't make them out well from the opposite end of the garden, but as he hitched Ange up in his arms and trailed after the rest-

"Everyone, welcome!" Krauss called, stepping out into the sunlight beside his wife. He held his hands out in welcome, and one quickly came down to shake Hideyoshi's as he smiled on to the rest. "It is good to see everyone made it in one piece- The flight wasn't delayed again this year?"

"Thankfully not," Rudolf answered as he strolled up to the gathering group, a grin on his face and in his voice. "Everything went smoothly, though it still dragged on like you wouldn't believe."

"You must all be very tired from the trip," Natsuhi observed, her greeting smile showing a touch of fatigue itself as she grabbed the group's attention. "Lunch will be ready shortly, but if you would like to have a chance to put down your bags and rest a little first, I will show you the new guest house."

"Oo-oh?" Eva practically rolled the sound off of her tongue, cracking a wide grin at her sister-in-law as Krauss continued to individually greet his siblings and nieces and nephews. "Show us yourself? What an unexpected pleasure, when a servant would usually guide us around."

The smile on Natsuhi's face disappeared in a blink, her features pinching together as she stared hard at Eva. "It cannot be helped. Otou-sama wished to have his lunch served early, in private, so it is only natural that the staff is occupied."

"Ah- Then Otou-sama will not be joining us for lunch? How strange."

"A-anyways," Rosa cut in, an awkward smile playing at her lips. "We've been looking forward to seeing the new guest house, Natsuhi-nee-san. We would love to see it."

"You're going to love it!" Jessica assured, grinning between the visitors without any sign of noticing the tension that had just risen and fallen in a blink. "The rooms are amazing- I've been wanting to move in myself since they finished them!"

"Jessica-" Natsuhi's voice threatened to turn sharp again, but Battler drowned her out with his own chuckling enthusiasm.

"Oo-oh, really?! I didn't know there was a new house!"

"-ah, Battler-kun," Krauss said as he focused on him, his pleased glance announcing that he had only just noticed him among the group's broken greetings. "So you came after all. Look how tall you have gotten."

Battler laughed again, choking on the surrealism of having that comment repeated for sixth or so time that morning- And by his severe old uncle, at that! "Ah, you know- It's only natural, right?!"

"It is, it is," Jessica mumbled, too quiet for her father to notice, but loud enough for the nearby cousins to hear and look back at her. "Only natural to be tall… But that just means he has farther to fall, right Maria-chan?"

"-right!" Maria agreed, calling out far louder than her smirking cousin and grabbing everyone's attention. "Falling! Falling! Uu- Uu-"

"Eeeeh- Cut it out already!"

* * *

"Genji, what is all of that noise out there?"

"I believe it is your younger children and grandchildren, master. They must have just arrived."

"That doesn't mean I need to listen to that- Shut the window."

"Of course."

"I will know no peace so long as they- What is it, Shannon?"

The young servant girl jerked at the question, the sudden softening of that deep, gruff voice catching her off-guard far more than any reprimand could have. The tray she held was blessedly empty, as she had frozen while setting the last of Kinzo's plates on the table, but Shannon still blushed, casting her eyes to the carpet with the knowledge of her own good luck. "N-nothing, sir."

The master gave a deep humming sound, one that caught in the back of his throat that Shannon recognized easiy. He was unsatisfied, and trying to decide whether to dismiss or insist, and she could only wait to find out which.

But what could she even say if he asked? The stall had been nothing but an impulse- A catch at the unfamiliar.

Shannon had managed to block out the distant chatter when it first started, kept her hands steady as she served the master, drowned out her own anticipation and anxiety in a deaf focus on the two men's conversation. She was excited to see the distant members of the Ushiromiya family - George would be arriving and likely looking for her, and Beatrice had a whole list of new tricks and ideas to share with Maria - but she still had to perform her duties as a maid before all else, and save such pleasures for her own time. She knew that, and acted accordingly.

But then, when Maria's young voice was followed by the call of a man not familiar, yet… Yet-

"...never mind then," Kinzo finally allowed, a faint shifting in her ear and peripheral telling her he had turned to his meal.

She stepped away from the table at the unsaid release, and looked up only when Genji slid to her side and murmured, "You should go to the kitchen and help Gohda and Kumasawa finish the preparations for lunch."

"-of course."

A short series of farewells and bows and dismissals followed, but within moments she was out in the hallway with the great heavy door shut behind her. Out there, alone, she could finally stop and shut her eyes, try to steady the dizziness that had struck her.

But, she was not alone.

"You're not thinking anything foolish, are you?"

Opening her eyes, she saw with no sense of surprise that it was her little brother, standing at the top of the stairs with an armful of linens and a frown on his face.

Despite it, Shannon smiled. "Kanon-kun, you finished changing the sheets in the rest of the mansion?"

"Yes, it's quick enough now that the guests are staying in the new house." He shifted his remaining load in his hands. Clearly it was the master's change of sheets, but he didn't move passed Shannon just yet to deliver them, continuing to stare at her with something between disapproval and concern. "You didn't answer me."

"-what is there to say? I wasn't thinking anything at all." And it was true, she had been trying to clear her mind, not linger on any thoughts.

Still Kanon shook his head slightly, looking off to the side at nothing in particular. "Milady invited you to join her and the cousins, didn't she?"

"Yes, just after lunch. But only for a bit, my full break for the visit isn't until tomorrow afternoon."

"-and will you spend that with the family as well?"

She, didn't answer.

She hadn't been invited to do so yet, and she wouldn't presume, even if she trusted Jessica or George to do so.

But… he wouldn't be satisfied by that answer.

To him, it would be a 'no' no matter if he was asked or not.

Kanon gave her a long chance to reply, but finally huffed and turned his frown back on her. "You shouldn't expect anything from them, Nee-san. You'll just end up hurt."

"-George-sama wouldn't hurt me," she insisted, cheeks flushing with the effort to stand her ground with such a direct reference to the man. "He's already made it clear what he wants, and- It's what I want, too. What is wrong with that?"

"What is wrong is we are servants, and to his family." The simple, flat answer was enough to sting her, make her look to the ground… But Kanon wasn't done, and it was his next comment that froze her cold. "And George-sama isn't the only problem, is he?"

"...I shouldn't leave Gouda-san and Kumasawa-san waiting." She couldn't even bring herself to look up, couldn't meet his eye as she skirted his form and made for the stairs.

He didn't stop her… But still Shannon saw him, in her mind, staring after her with knowing, frustrated eyes, until he finally dismissed her in turn, and knocked on the master's door.

Of course, no one would ever answer him.


	3. October 13th, 1984 (2)

**OCTOBER 13th** , **1984  
** **Rokkenjima Island**

"Aaaah, that steak was to die for!" Battler cried as he flopped back into the sofa cushions, patting his stomach with a pleased sigh. "I can't believe you get to eat food like that every day!"

"Gouda-san's meal was indeed delicious," George agreed, relaxing into one of the parlor chairs with a far milder echo of his younger cousin's claim. "He must have gone to great effort to prepare it for us."

"Heh, it probably wasn't that hard," Jessica dismissed, her grin and following praise softening a claim that might well have come off as flippant otherwise. "He pulls off feats like all of the time- He just turned it up a notch for the sake of the conference."

"Seriously?" Battler asked in half-amazement, half-disinterest, the vague tone beneath the question prompting no real answer. And Jessica must have understood that, for she allowed the conversation to trail off, leaving a comfortable silence to sprout up between the three that was filled only by the sound effects of some cartoon show and the laughter of the youngest two cousins.

In a sense, it was a quiet moment all three needed. They were sincerely complimenting the skill of the chef, but the topic was more a place of refuge for them, rather than a real topic of interest. It was just far easier to focus on that, than what was said over lunch.

It wasn't like anything _bad_ really happened. No one had been fighting- The worse that had been shared were a few thinly veiled snipes between the adults, and even those had been spare and quickly overwhelmed by the majority and their well-meaning intent to have a happy reunion. The siblings had shared news with one another, the in-laws had traded their opinions of the meal served, everyone had cooed over how cute Maria and Ange were getting, Battler had been ribbed left and right about his height and grades and if he had any special someone yet… Really, if anyone outside the group had been listening in, they would have observed nothing more than the conversations typical of any normal family get-together!

But, there _had_ been one outsider to the group- A doctor, who had been introduced to Battler as a 'Dr. Nanjo'.

And the reason he was there…

" _Will we get to see you here on the island the whole weekend, Dr. Nanjo?"_

" _I… believe so, Ushiromiya-san."_

" _Dr. Nanjo has been good enough to stay with us often, Eva-san. Especially this last month or so- Father says he greatly enjoys his company."_

The smile faded from Battler's face as he considered to that echo, and he slowly opened his eyes, just to stare up at the ceiling.

"…hey, Jessica." He dropped his voice for the sake of the girls, watching television on the other side of the parlor, but there was no denying that the somber edge that marked his mumblings due to his quiet tones. "The old man- He's not doing well, is he?"

Jessica took a quick checking glance towards the kids, and after seeing neither had noticed the question, she answered- Deflating somewhat as she leaned her back against the arm of the sofa. "No, I don't think so… No one's willing to ever admit anything, but he's been holing himself up in that study of his more and more often this year. I see him maybe once every seven days, if that, and that doctor friend of his really _has_ been around a lot. He's nice, don't get me wrong, but… It feels like he's haunting the place, just waiting- Like some grim reaper or something."

"…could Grandfather be avoiding us, to hide his symptoms? Or that he is too sick to handle even a meal with us without tiring?"

Jessica shrugged at George's hesitant question, not even turning to face them. "Who knows… He's as lively and stern as ever when I see him. It could just be Grandfather being Grandfather."

Maybe so, but there was no denying their parents feared the worst. They might have played at ease during lunch, in front of _them_ , but all three cousins knew exactly why they had shooed the kids off as soon as desert was cleared, shutting themselves away in the dining room.

There was only one topic those adults would likely work so hard to keep from their ears.

"…aaah, come on!" Battler threw himself to his feet with an impatient spring, bringing all eyes in the room towards him and his determined frown. "What are we lazing around here for?! We've got a whole island here, don't we? Why don't we go exploring or something?!"

"Explore?" Ange echoed, words lilting on a clear interest, only for Maria to override her with a dragging tease of a warning.

"Uuu- Not the forest, we can't go in there. That's the witch's wood."

"-eh?" Battler peered curiously down at the girl, squatting before the television. The witch's- Where had she picked that up? The- phrase sounded pretty familiar when he thought about it, but that wonder was all but buried beneath an uneasy pang that hit him, seeing the delighted grin Maria had said that with.

What was she…

"-I was thinking we could go to the beach." Battler turned about at Jessica's interjection, successfully distracted by the hesitance in his cousin's voice, if not the suggestion. She snuck a look towards the door as she spoke, as if expecting someone to appear. "But we have to wait here first. After we got kicked out of the dining room, I asked Kumasawa-san to tell her to come meet us here."

"-her who?"

But neither of them answered him. When he looked to George, he found the older man looking to the window, smiling to himself in an odd, relieved manner, and before Battler could ask or turn the question on Jessica again, there was a knock at the door.

"Excuse me…"

"Ah," Jessica cried, bouncing away from the sofa edge to make for the door as George sharply rose, and Battler and the kids could only look on, perplexed. "It's fine, come on in!"

…it was a girl.

A pretty, dark-haired little servant girl opened the door, eyes shyly caught on the carpet as she shuffled in and made a little bow. "I hope I'm not disturbing you…"

"Ah, there you are! I was afraid they kept you caught in the kitchen again." Jessica rushed over and moved fully behind the girl, pressing her encouragingly forward into the room. The girl looked less than thrilled about it beneath her demures, but Battler could barely register that, caught as he was in an unblinking daze. He stared, mind straining under roaring thoughts that just would not connect, _trying_ to figure out _why_ he recognized-

"We were all waiting for you!"

"I- I hope I didn't keep you waiting."

"Not at all, not at all. You know everybody, of course– Though, you haven't seen Battler in a while, huh?" The blush that seemed permanently stained on the girl's cheeks spread a little farther as Jessica not only drew their joint attention to the servant, but called out Battler in particular to interact with her. "Hey, you remember Shannon, don't you Battler?"

And finally it clicked.

"-Shannon-chan!" he cried, the surprised relief of revelation in his smile. "I'll be, is that really you?! No way… Didn't you turn out pretty?!"

"T-that's kind of you to say, Battler-sama. It's good to see you again."

Battler was more than ready to dismiss the stumbling niceties, curiosity about this unexpected familiar face leaving him anxious to sweep them away in favor of more familiar chatter- But Shannon's shy smile bypassed him before he could even manage it, focusing on the other man in the room with a warm, steadier smile. "And you, George-sama…"

"Likewise, of course," George offered the girl a soft grin, as if to reassure her, and indeed Shannon seemed to calm under his gaze, as if she had found some anchor against her own nerves within his smile.

It was curious thing that made Battler pause, intrigued but still thrown off by the exchange, and in that stutter something tugged on his pant leg.

He looked down to find Ange there, frowning up at him. "You know?"

"-ah, of course I know her!" Battler scooped the girl up in his arms, bringing her on eye-level with everyone else. "This is Shannon-chan, she was working here the last time I visited, too- I never would have guessed you'd still be here!"

"Battler!" Jessica smacked at his arms with a sharp glare, making him jump and glower back at her.

What?! He'd meant he was _impressed_! Not many people would stick with a single job that long, would they? Especially if they started that young!

Before he could begin to doubt his own wording, though, Shannon dipped her head, a faint smile at her lips. "Yes, the family has been good enough to keep me in their service for a long time."

"Good for _us_ , you mean," Jessica emphasized, her expression brightening as she turned her focus on her. "I for one am relieved you're still here, Shannon."

"Don't go saying it like that, Jessica-chan… We're all glad to have Shannon-chan here with us."

The shy flush that had popped up on the girl's face when Jessica spoke went deep red at George's soft input, and while Shannon looked pleased with the compliments, Battler couldn't shake the feeling that he had goofed up somewhere. It knocked him off balance, and he rushed into a question with an awkwardly smiling, stumbling haste. "We were just talking about going to the beach, you want to join us?"

"Ah… Thank you, but my break isn't very long- I have to go clean the second floor in half an hour."

"Ah, that so…"

Too bad, but before he could really come back from the necessary refusal, Jessica jumped in with a quick, "That's why I brought this!" She held out a deck of cards she must have had in her coat pocket, grinning widely. "I knew you wouldn't have a long time, but you can stick around long enough to play a game with us, right? I promised Maria-chan I'd show her how to play Daihinmin."

"Uu- Needy! Needy!" Maria cried as she finally got up from before the television, overhearing the name of the game.

"W-well," Shannon stumbled, grinning down at Maria as she popped up at her side. "I'm afraid I've never played that, myself."

"Don't worry, it's fairly simple," George assured, motioning invitingly to the end table with an easy confidence Battler wasn't used to seeing on him. "I could teach you in a few minutes, and we would still have enough time for a game."

"-then I'd be happy to join, George-sama," Shannon answered, looking simply delighted with the idea as she followed his lead to the table.

Battler moved to follow them, but Jessica caught his arm.

"Not yet- We can tell Maria how to play over by the television."

"Huh? But why-" Battler was cut off when Jessica tugged again, not away but down to where she could put her hand to his ear and whisper, out of the hearing of the curious-eyed Ange, still in his arms. " _Because_ , they haven't had a chance to talk to each other yet! We should leave them alone for a bit?"

" _Eeh?!_ " Battler jolted back, but thankfully didn't burst out loud enough that George or Shannon looked up… from where they were sitting together, leaning close to talk as they smiled at one another. " _Are, those two an item?!_ "

"Heh, sort of," Jessica crossed her arms, smiling over at the pair with the satisfaction of someone pleased with their work. "They haven't said so yet, but they're both obviously into each other, and they've stopped outright denying it when I suggest it to them separately. They just need more time and space to feel it out together, you'll see."

"No way…" Battler never would have guessed! …and given he was likely just seconds from making even more pointed compliments to the girl he remembered with fuzzy but fond recollection, he felt grateful for Jessica warning him before he went and embarrassed himself too horribly.

"-what are you talking about?" Ange asked, frowning up at the two like they were trying to hide something from her. –which was technically true, but Jessica just gave off a quick, sharp laugh with a wave.

"Nothing, Ange-chan! –hey, you want to learn to play the game with along Maria-chan?"

"Uu- Play with Maria-chan, Ange!"

"-cards?"

"-yeah," Battler answered, knocking himself out of his lingering daze enough to set the girl down on her own feet, grinning at her. "Daihinmin's fun, Ange-chan. You'll like it!"

His little sister didn't look quite convinced, but she willingly watched as Jessica started pulling out the cards and explaining the rules… Freeing Battler enough to change peering over his shoulder again… To catch George chuckling at something as he pat Shannon on the head, prompting a new blush from the girl.

 _George-aniki and Shannon-chan, huh_? He chuckled to himself, a quiet, subdued emotion he couldn't quite place flowing through him as he turned his back on them again, focusing on the girls. _Good for them_ …

* * *

"-are we really certain Grandfather is coming?"

"Enough, Jessica. We must be patient."

"You're not wrong, though- Granddad's sure taking his time with this one."

Shannon watched as Battler leaned in enough to whisper that, earning back a quiet agreement from Jessica.

She could see their profiles as they spoke, but neither turned to look at her. They had both smiled at her when they entered, and looked for excuses at first to look her way and mutely include her in the family proceedings… But it had been twenty minutes since the family sat down to await the arrival of the Head for dinner.

In that time, they had forgotten her.

Shannon stared into that reality with blank eyes- Coming to life with a soft smile only when George or Maria looked to at her from across the table and their cousins' head. George- He had seemed strangely tense when she first met him in the parlor, with his cousins. No one else had seemed to notice, but she had… But he had calmed since, his smiles growing more real during their precious chance to speak alone over the card game. It was the gentle, warm man she knew so well that looked at her from across the table, and she treasured every look. Every glance was like an anchor of light to her, there in that silent, tense room.

A distraction, from _her_ …

She slowly turned her gaze slightly, giving in to the impulse to look at her- At the woman with long, golden hair, and the stylish outfit, who stood just beside Shannon.

 _Beatrice_ …

The witch- She had been there, beside her, all afternoon. Every moment Shannon was in the parlor, every second since the family filed into the dining room, Beatrice had been there, too.

She hadn't said anything- Not once. She never interrupted Shannon's work or distracted her from the people around her.

She was just… _There_ … Staring…

Not at Shannon- But Battler.

She looked at him like she was drowning, the usual sharp, determined manner of the witch completely stuffed out with a single look at that young man, leaving behind a woman broken, and stifled.

 _I'm so sorry_ … Shannon wanted to help her, but it was her fault, and she wasn't even really willing to do the one thing that would relieve the witch.

' _If, by the time Battler comes back, these sprouts have yet to wither, and you wish for it, I'll return these sprouts to you.' …that's what you said, wasn't it?_

Clearly, the sprouts of love still lived, within Beatrice's chest… But Shannon had no room for them anymore in her own- She had already planted new seeds there, and they were just beginning to spring up, grow into some far more wonderful than she could have ever hoped for. She couldn't dig them up, to replant what Beatrice sheltered for her.

And, even if, she were free to take them… Battler had not come back…

Not for _her_.

 _He doesn't remember_. She was certain of that. She hadn't asked, and Battler certainly _knew_ her, that much was true… But he had not said anything- Had only implied his own ignorance.

' _I never would have guessed you'd still be here!'_

 _Never would have guessed… If you were so certain, that I was no longer a servant here, then why didn't you come back for me?_

The answer was simple… He had forgotten. Or, her fears had been right, and he had never meant it as a promise to begin with. She had invented the promise and the trial with her own hands.

She did not know… And really, it did not matter. Not for herself anymore.

But… the witch…

"…he really, came back…"

Shannon clenched her teeth, fighting the urge to reply to the witch no one else could see. But she still thought the question.

 _-had that been said out of joy… Or sorrow…?_

"Pardon me." All eyes turned to the door to find Genji there, bowing in the entrance way. "He has arrived. I present to you, the master of Rokkenjima, Lord Kinzo Ushiromiya."

Those who had not already risen in anticipation jumped to their feet as the familiar, imposing figure of the lord filled the doorway.

"F-Father," Krauss started, thrown suddenly out of his conversation with Rudolf by the patriarch's appearance. "We're so glad you could join us-"

"Save your veiled complaints," Kinzo cut in with a passing impatience, his eyes already busy surveying the rest of the people at the table- The faces of his own family, shocked and fearful and relieved all at once. "So, you all came this year."

"O-Of course we did, Father," Eva answered for them all, putting on a smile more brave than true as she stood up. "We have all been looking forward to it- To seeing you."

"I admit we were a touch anxious," Rudolf admitted with would-be nonchalance as he tugged at his tie. "-when you didn't show up for lunch today."

"Yes, I'm so glad to see you look well," Rosa agreed, slowly easing into a smile that cracked like a plate slammed to the ground as soon as Kinzo answered her.

"Well? HAhahaha- I am perfectly fine! You think I am so frail that I was avoiding you because of my _health_?! Fools!"

"-it is only natural, isn't it, Kinzo-sama, for family to worry for one another?"

The politely hesitant, yet firm counter from the doctor sitting on the far side of the table drew a quiet, considering noise from the master, and he moved without further word for the first seat.

As he sat, his eyes slid up again and, seemingly at random, found Shannon.

The gaze of the master was stern enough in passing, but she was used to that much. It was the way it hung pointedly beyond a moment that made the servant girl look down at her shoes.

He did that sometimes… Had been, off and on, for months. Just, _stared_ at her, like she was out of place somehow. Or, perhaps, that she was in the wrong place?

She didn't know what to make of it, but it made her nervous.

As such, she blocked out much of the conversation, only staying honed in enough to catch her name, should it be mentioned, or a call for more water.

Instead she listened to Beatrice, still standing beside her. Still staring at Battler.

"…I do not understand him. Why does he remember you, but not his promise? Why did he greet you so warmly, but never come back- Never write? Did you ever matter him… Or didn't you?"

 _It does not matter_ , Shannon wanted to say- But she could not. That would be too cruel. It might harden her own heart as she needed to, but it would hurt the witch- Belittle the feelings Shannon had left to her- Feelings she had called too precious to give up, once upon a time.

Yes… What did that say, that she even now considered that pain and love too precious to simply forget, and yet she was not willing to accept them?

"-and that is all you have to say?!"

The sudden yell tossed Shannon back into the reality before her- The family having dinner before her. A dinner that had stalled, because-

Kinzo was standing, face lit with rage as he stared at-

Battler.


	4. October 13th, 1984 (3)

**OCTOBER 13th** , **1984**  
 **Rokkenjima Island**

"-and that is all you have to say?!"

Battler… stared at his grandfather, at a loss for words.

What else was he supposed to say? He couldn't imagine there was anything wrong with what he had said. Wasn't it natural to respond to his grandfather as he had?

But then, perhaps that was simply natural for him now? Kinzo had seemed in a bad mood from the moment he walked through the dining room door, and his temper was far fouler than Battler recalled from his youth. He had chewed up and spit out Battler's dad, aunts, and uncle each in turn, and made the full-grown adults flinch and dodge his gaze like frightened, chastened school children. And yes, while the patriarch was relatively less cutting with his grandchildren, he was still gruff as he berated Jessica for her grades and speech pattern and frowned darkly as George confirmed his successes in school- Only to have Eva jump in to sing her son's praises. Kinzo said nothing, but was clear that he didn't like the implication that his grandson required his mother's support to make a simply good impression.

After all of that, Battler naturally expected some manner of rebuke. The order of events was obvious enough- The head was running down the table, turning a critical eye on each family member in turn, and the red-haired branch member grandson came right behind George.

And yet, his grandfather threw him for a loop twice over. First, he left Battler pleasantly surprised, even quietly relieved as he caught his eye and said, "So, you finally decided to come back" with an observing sort of ease. Perhaps Battler should have expected it, the storm beneath the calm, but the contrast to the expression Kinzo had had moments before misled the young man, and he laughed and grinned in answer.

"Yeah, it's been strange, seeing everything that's changed since I was last here. But I'm glad I got to come see everyone again. Despite everything, you're really the same old family I remember."

He had said it all so lightly, carefree, but there was a warmth behind the words- For the fun aunts and uncle he had reunited with, and the old cousin playmates he had finally reunited with. And he had meant the words with good will, so, even if the one he spoke to was his severe grandfather, he hadn't anticipated anything worse than a disapproving huff, or perhaps a shift in subject to his grades.

What he had not expected was for Kinzo to keep staring at him, as if convinced Battler was certainly not done speaking… And just when Battler felt a small twinge of unbalance, confused by the silence that dragged on, his grandfather erupted with that question.

-was, that all he had to say?

…it was, at least as far as he was concerned. Because, what else was there to say? Battler could never imagine Kinzo wanted him to openly shower him in assurances that he had missed his grandfather, or relief that he looked healthy, so what?

"W-well…" He floundered, hoping for some hint of what he was expected to say, but instead Battler's confusion only seemed to enrage Kinzo further, and he rose to his feet.

"You come to pay respect to this family for the first time in half a decade, and that's all you have to say to me?!"

"F… Father, I am sure that Battler-" the stumbling try at intervention, coming from Krauss, was quickly smacked down near-literally.

"Stay out of this!"

Kinzo didn't bother to look directly enough to land a proper blow on his son, but the hand that hit Krauss's chest sent him back into his chair with a grunt that made them all jolt, their faces all covered with as much confusion as dread.

Or, at least Battler so thought, but his mind was whirling too much to really mind George's efforts to hiss at him.

"Battler-kun, you shouldn't-"

"W-what else is there to say?" It was his honest thought, but his cousin and others flinched under the question, and Battler could see the rage boiling again in the old man's blue eyes, prompting him to rush on with a blind, skeptical "If you're asking if I missed all of you, then-"

"Do you think I care about that, or your false assurances?!" The scream wasn't loud, but the gravel beneath stayed the protest in Battler's throat long enough for Kinzo to go on, pointing a sharp finger towards him. "Do you think I want to hear something as sentimental as that from a grandson like you, who turned his back on this family without even a shred of shame?!"

Battler, went stiff.

That was the only word for it. Even if he had already been tense from confusion and helpless alarm, in that moment, something visibly and internally hardened within him.

Oh…

That was the only way to characterize that sudden shift of perspective, the harsh awareness that this lecture wasn't for coming back in the wrong way, but for leaving and staying away in the first place.

And now, truly, Battler had nothing to say.

And even if he did, he couldn't. Even with Kinzo yelling right at him, in all of his wrath and glory, Battler was painfully aware of the other eyes in the room all trained on him… Ange's eyes.

He couldn't explain himself, or defend himself, as long as she was there to hear- No matter how angry it made him.

But, what he heard, above the ringing in his ears-

"-belittling us all, not simply failing to pay your respects, but abandoning your very name! Clearly you have no sense of honor or respect for the Ushiromiya family if you can do that without hesitating, and then come back so shamelessly!"

"That's not it," Battler said, trying to keep calm, not blow on the flames, but there was no denying the tunnel vision to his own growing anger, as he saw but refused to see his family trying to stall him with look and gesture without words. "I have nothing against the family, but what else was I supposed to do? Act like nothing had changed?!"

"You think that weak defense excuses you?!" Kinzo slammed his fist down on the table, knocking over glasses and shaking plates as he grit his teeth towards his grandson. "You should have done nothing- A son has no right to judge his parent in the first place! And even if you did, it does not matter! If the best you could think of, weak and unimaginative as you are, was abandoning your name and shaming your whole family to punish your father, then you are as foolish and selfish as he is!"

-it wasn't that anything shattered.

No, everything went very still…

Though not literally. Around him people were cringing, Rudolf was bending his head like he was in pain, the smaller girls were quietly cowering – Ange crying – and family members from all ends of the table were trying and failing to gather the courage to cut in, and Kinzo- Kinzo hadn't stopped. But his remarks on honor, and pride, and insult were as Greek to Battler. Even when the word disown flowed through the air, and Rudolf bolted from his seat with a cry of "F-Father, it is not-" Battler minded none of it.

He rose from his chair too, but only to turn his back… And make for the door.

"B-Battler-" Jessica tried and failed to catch his sleeve, but her efforts drew all eyes to the retreating back.

"-where are you going? You think you can just walk away from me?!" Kinzo screamed, but Battler didn't even look back- Didn't look at any of them.

He just threw open the door and walked away.

"-nii-chan… Onii-chan!"

"Ange-chan!"

It was unbelievable. More than a dozen adults surrounding her, and still the little, sobbing girl managed to bolt out of her chair, right by the rising grown-ups, and get out of the door before any of them could grab her.

Kyrie moved as if to run after her, but a yell from Kinzo cracked over her back. "Enough! No one else is leaving this room without my permission! I will not have anyone else going to him after that!"

"B-but-" Kyrie stumbled, clearly straining to not simply snap back at that irrational demand.

They were all drawn as tight as a bowstring, stuck staring at each other, what had just happened and where the two red-haired branch children had gone screaming through their minds.

-she would never be exactly certain where she had pulled the courage from, but-

"If… If you please, master-" Shannon couldn't even look at him as she dared. She just stared at her own feet, caught in a deep bow as she dared speak to the head directly, before the whole family, in such a situation. "If I could have your permission to leave, I would go make certain that Ange-sama is safe. It started to rain just before dinner, and if she went outside…"

"S-Shannon-" It was Madam, and yet for once Shannon could not swear if she was rebuking her, or simply taken aback.

And for once Shannon could really did not care what the answer might be.

"…do as you like."

Despite her own nerve, Shannon jolted up at the words, locking eyes for one, shocked moment, with a Kinzo who stared, still raging, still terrifying, yet- Introspective, rather than lashing out.

-she didn't waste a breath to consider it. She just turned and ran out of the door.

* * *

"-Ange-sama! …Ange-sama!"

"What was he thinking, calling Battler out like that in front of everyone?!"

Shannon didn't respond, didn't even look up at the witch's outcry.

It was not the first Beatrice had made, by any means. She had been yelling and carrying on since the fight between the head and the long missing grandson broke out, and had not ceased for a moment as Shannon sought release from the dining room, collected an umbrella, and ran out into the mist calling Ange's name.

There was simply no time to answer. She had to save her breath for running- For focusing on finding that little girl.

But she could still hear her clearly.

"And what was Battler thinking actually yelling back?! That idiot- He should have known it wouldn't end well! And… And, even if, you can't let Kinzo walk all over you if you want to get anywhere with him… It's not like, he was wrong…"

The servant girl stalled a step on the garden path, caught by the strained pain that had stifled the witch's voice.

…no-

Shannon shook her head, lowered her hand from where it had been pressed to her chest, and rushed forward.

She had no time for that. She had a duty to fulfill, and every moment wasted increased the distance between her and her goal.

She could leave what happened back in the dining room, and the mixed feelings that prompted, all to the witch.

"Ange-sama! Ange-sama! …Ange-sama!"

"-!"

…it, might have been her imagination, or the wind or the rain playing games with her. But it was enough like a hiccup or a gasp that she caught herself, pivoting around on the spot to try and spot the source.

In the end, it was no surprise she had not spotted her… the girl was practically swallowed by the bushes around her, all taller than her tiny frame.

"Ange-sama…" Shannon could have literally sighed her relief, but there was no time for it before the tiny Ushiromiya dropped her hands from her eyes and rushed at her, fingers clutching at the servant's skirt.

"Please! Battler-nii-chan… Help me find him!" The rain was falling over her, weighing down her hair and sticking to her skin, but still it was clear that most of what ran down her cheeks were tears. "Please!"

"-please, calm down, Ange-sama," Shannon tried, tentatively trying to touch the girl's shoulder, but the vigorous shaking of her head just threw it right back off.

"No, you don't know! He ran outside, but he isn't in that house- I checked! I can't find him!"

…not in the guest house?

That, stalled her focus effectively enough, and Shannon's gaze turned uncertainly up on the path that led to the visitor's abode…

Only to drop again at a follow-up tug at her skirt.

"Please… Will you help me find him?!"

Those big, teary eyes begged her, and what flimsy hesitance Shannon could even manage to cobble together in her heart fell instantly to pieces.

Was it going against what she said to the head? Was it potentially a fool's errand? Was it likely to get her into trouble?

"Who cares about all of that?!" Beatrice glowered determinedly down at her, and though Shannon did not look up to observe her there, floating in the rain, she could still see her there, with her heart's eye, and it was as though they had locked gazes. "Are you going to turn your back and ignore this girl's wish? Turn your back on him?! I will not stand for it!"

No… That simply would not do.

"-of course, Ange-sama." The assurance calmed the girl enough that she actually looked at Shannon for the first time, and the clear shift in focus encouraged the maid enough to properly smile. "I know this island well- I'll help you find all of the likely places he would be hiding, alright?"

"Y-yes…"

And with that, the servant offered her hand, and the two walked off together, down a new path.

The walk was not long in the end, as Shannon knew better than to head towards the guest house now, and in two of the other directions lay nothing but the main house again, and the path back to the empty pier. Both were unlikely, and all that left was the treed area about the storehouse, the forest off to the other side of the house, and the rose garden itself.

The chapel floated through Shannon's mind as they walked, both too focused on searching to bother with conversation, but that place was locked. That could not be… Unless Battler didn't know that, and he turned back after finding himself bolted out…

The sudden squeeze of Ange's hand was all the hint Shannon got before she let go and bolted, dashing down the path they had been on, towards-

"Onii-chan!"

Indeed, even stalled a few yards away, Shannon could see him- Rising from the stone table beneath the gazebo just fast enough to catch the little girl who launched herself into his arms.

He, came… Here…

It had to mean nothing. It had to be a coincidence- A result born from the cover the gazebo provided. Not, the history that place signified… For them…

"Was he, drawn here for some reason?"

Shannon didn't know how to answer the witch… And she left Beatrice there alone, standing in the rain, as she moved closer to the two siblings-

"Onii-chan! Onii-chan!"

"Hey, hey-" There was nothing of that dinner's answer in Battler's voice as he scooped the girl up in his arms and supported her in as she clung close… But there was a fond confusion as she kept sobbing. "It's okay, it's okay… Was it that scary, hearing Granddad and I yell? Sorry, Ange-chan, I didn't mean to scare you-"

"It's not that!" The girl jerked back, making Battler stumble to keep his balance, but she just kept on, staring up at him with desperate, watery eyes. "I thought you disappeared! You were fighting, and then you left- That's what Mom always said happened with Dad! –will that happen now?! Are you going to leave again?!"

Shannon… Heard nothing. Not the rain. Not the wind. Not the witch.

Everything, the very world itself, had gone completely mute and still to make room for the presence of that little girl and her cries… And Battler's reply.

She couldn't even hear her own heartbeat, or the way her breath caught as she stared… Painfully grateful and resentful that the siblings were angled just right for her to see, Battler's expression, as it was struck with shock, and slowly bleed into something soft, and sad, and… and…

"What are you saying?" He repositioned the girl higher in his grip, so he could grin at her from eye-level. "Of course I'm not going to leave."

Shannon's breath hitched in her throat, caught around a word as her eyes, went warm. One word-

"Really?" Ange rubbed at her own face before blinking back at her brother. "You mean it? You just got back, and-"

"Yeah, I left because I was mad then, too." Battler bend down to set Ange back on her own feet, but stayed kneeling long enough to hold her shoulders as he gently corrected her. "But that was way different, Ange-chan. Much bigger than a simple fight… We're mad, but families- Sometimes they just fight."

That wasn't it. Shannon knew- It was true that the Ushiromiya could have some cold, ugly fights, and then move forward like nothing had ever happened.

But, this was Kinzo… And Shannon wasn't aware she was gripping her umbrella handle so hard until her knuckles were outright screaming- And even then she did nothing about it.

How… How could Battler speak so certainly of not leaving, when… after…

"-Shannon-chan?"

"-eh?" She jolted, dizzy with the sudden outward focus, and the hyper-awareness of Battler and Ange both looking over at her. "Ah, er…"

"What are you doing there?"

"She helped me find you."

"Did she? I see... Thanks, Shannon-chan!"

"I-It was nothing, I assure you." The simple, rapid fire exchange made the color rise in the girl's cheeks, even as she could only internally marvel at how light both brother and sister's manner grew, the moment they noticed her there. All tears and brotherly warmth replaced with calm and friendly curiosity. "I was afraid Ange-sama would catch cold, running out in the rain."

"Ah… And it looks like you still managed to go swimming, huh?" Battler was clearly caught in the rain himself, but where he was a little soggy, Ange was drenched, and her little body had made a clear wet spot on Battler's shirt and vest where he had hugged her.

That didn't stop him from picking her right back up again, though, or playfully tousling hair too heavy to move right. "We should get you to the guest house so you can change- Shannon-chan?"

"Y-yes?" It was too much in its way, how suddenly Battler would focus on her like that, a question in his eyes.

"I know you need to go back, but- Would you and that umbrella of yours stick with us at least as far as the guest house?"

It was a natural enough request, and yet Shannon stumbled for the right words to reply- And the off-kilter feeling in her only teetered further when she answered, and the hesitance fled Battler's eyes.

"Of course."


	5. October 13th, 1984 (4)

**OCTOBER 13th** , **1984  
** **Rokkenjima Island**

"You sure you can find and put on your pajamas by yourself?"

"No, no- I can do it! Stay out here and don't come in!"

Ange glowered authoritatively and shut the guest room door in her brother's face- And all Battler could do was snicker at the white wood.

"Will she really be alright on her own?"

Battler cocked his head back to glance at the servant girl still with him in the hallway, hovering a few steps away, and simply shrugged at the uncertainty he saw written on her face.

"Probably." He skirted a glance towards the door before moving away– Farther away from Ange's potential range of hearing, where he could drop his voice for only Shannon to hear. "We should let her try on her own first. She's going through that phase where she wants to prove she can do everything by herself."

The 'I'm a big girl now' phase, as her mom put it. Indulging Ange's independence might result in some mismatched shoes or a tumble off of a bike now and then, but Kyrie was probably right when she discouraged needless intervention. It was better to help the girl pick up the pieces of her mistakes, than never give her a chance to make and learn from them in the first place… Especially when she was so enthusiastic to prove herself.

It was an easy order for Battler to follow, in any case. He thought the little determined faces Ange made were cute, and more often than not it was _him_ she was trying to emulate with her endeavors.

And getting to watch her make that face just now had been a nice distraction… At least for as long as she had been about. But as Shannon trailed off with a quiet "Very well" and the seconds ticked on? The reason they were even standing in that hallway – what brought them there, and what they could expect next… It all began to slide back to the forefront of Battler's mind. The same thoughts that had haunted him out there in the garden…

The fight that had followed him out of that dining room…

What did his grandfather want from him?

"… ah… Battler-sama?"

"Eh?" Battler lifted his head with a blink, only aware of the grimace that had formed on his face after he lost it, and turned a dazed, waking attention on Shannon.

The girl opened her mouth, only for nothing to come out, and she simply closed it again with a skirting glance to the door.

Battler's focus on her had been passing, even shallow, but that hesitance finally prompted him to turn and mind her properly. That's right… Shannon had been there all along, at his side since the gardens, but he hadn't really _observed_ her since then. His focus had been on reassuring his little sister, and his own broodings.

Only then, as he eyed her directly, did he notice the all too obvious signs that something was troubling her. That something was weighing on the usually sweet, anxious girl, leaving her distant and quiet. That there was something she _wanted_ to say… But wasn't.

So, naturally, he coaxed her.

"What's up?"

Shannon slid her gaze up, met his eye uncertainly, but visibly eased under his steady stare until she found the courage – eyes back on the floor, fingers steepled tensely together – to ask. "Please, excuse me for my impudence, but… Did- Did you mean it? What you said to your sister?"

"-huh?" His sister- Did, she mean the stuff he said back in the gardens? "…which part?"

Shannon, pursed her lips. So lightly, so subtly, Battler _probably_ shouldn't have noticed it. But he had, and the instinctive certainty that _she didn't like that he had to ask_ zipped through his mind so quickly he more reacted than thought it, frowning in his confusion until the maid, slowly, replied. "…that you definitely, will not leave again."

"-oh."

That, wasn't what he had expected. Actually, he didn't know _what_ he had expected, but either way he didn't understand, and he scratched the back of his neck with a frown as he stared at her downturned face, scrambling for _why_ she would ask that of all things. Why it mattered to her.

It, shouldn't, should it?

He shied away from that line of thought instantly, instinctively, knowing without question that it would lead down foolish, needless paths.

Instead, he fell back on simple, mindless reaction with a listless shrug, turning to lean back against the hallway wall with his hands in his pockets. "Yeah, of course I did. I'm not planning to leave again- Not after _that_." No, his grandfather could be terrifying and infuriating, but humiliating Battler in front of the family was _nothing_ next to what his dad did.

"…that, may be so-"

Battler turned his gaze – partly wary, partly curious – back on Shannon, and found that she was still looking at the carpet near his shoes… But there was a strange sort of firmness about her eyes, her mouth, that belied her rickety speech. "But, the master seemed very angry, and what if he…"

"-disowns me?" he finished for her, earning a small, mute nod as an award. Unfortunately, where it was easy to guess her question, then answer… "It could happen, yeah." He couldn't control his grandfather's actions, after all, and he couldn't imagine his dad really gainsaying him on the matter when it came down to it. Still, Battler met the open drop of Shannon's mood with a steady smile and the shake of his head. "I don't expect it, though. I know it was bad back there, but that's why I left- So I wouldn't give into the urge to yell back." Indeed, he had _ached_ with the urge to throw the old man's words back down his throat, with _interest_. But, he knew nothing would come of it. It was senseless to think he could 'win' against his grandfather- The head and provider of the family, who saw it as a child's duty to obey without question. Battler knew that.

So, he had walked away before his anger truly ruled him.

"And I'm not planning to hide for this whole visit. I'll talk to him- Even apologize, if that's what he wants." Shannon's attention started up at his words, eyes wide and shocked and clearly not yet daring to believe him… And yet, where that look encouraged Battler to go on, her expression only seemed to cloud again when he admitted, "I probably did take too long, in coming back- I see that now." Even if he was still angry with his dad when he thought about it, the unfettered welcome of Kyrie and Ange's enthusiasm had planted doubts in his mind… And they had only grown since he set foot on that island. "So, I can at least tell him I'm sorry for staying away from the family until now- Apologize for dragging my feet like I did."

He, didn't really understand the expressions that slid across Shannon's face. There were too many to track, and all too subtle to read. All his scrutiny earned him was an awareness they had been there at all… And then they did not matter, buried beneath the reply she finally, belatedly gave him. "That would likely help… However, he seemed namely angered by how you left. I believe to reconcile with him successfully, you would need to acknowledge, and apologize for that."

"…then yeah, that might have a problem." He wasn't as certain as Shannon was that that was the one and only route to reconciliation, but he had to acknowledgement her argument as it was, leaning his head back against the wall as he stared at the ceiling, and his own conundrum. "That is the one thing I can't do."

"…"

Battler slowly turned his head, wondering why Shannon didn't reply. Perhaps she simply couldn't think of what to say… But one look at her spoke volumes. Her head was turned down, her hair hiding much of her face… But he could see how tense her features were beneath the locks. How still her figure was, and how her fingers were twisted tight in her apron.

She was the perfect picture of mute distress… And he had no clue why.

"…I've caused you trouble."

Maybe it was the sudden break in the silence, or the serious note in his voice, but Shannon jolted upward, stared at him like a deer in headlights- Before all light fell from her face, trapped behind eyes like fogged glass, as she offered him a smile. "Not at all, Battler-sama. It was not my place to ask to begin with."

No… No, he _really_ didn't like that.

And where she hid what she felt, Battler's glower was quite open. "I _do_ mean to stay with the family now, and keep my word to Ange. You get that, right? What else can I say?" Surely, even if she thought he should offer more to his grandfather, that was enough for _her_.

But Shannon's fingers were still stiff in her skirts, and her features barely shifted- Any true softness that touched them far too gloomy for Battler's comfort. No, she only looked to his feet again… Wouldn't meet his eye as she assured him that "You don't need to say anything else, Battler-sama… If that is the case, then I will wish you the best of luck."

"…" He didn't get it. He didn't understand why she looked so sad- Why he felt like he had done something wrong- Something to _her_.

What had he said?

He didn't know, and he let the silence trail on so long that the door opened before he found any other words.

"I'm done!" Ange announced as she rushed out of the guestroom, proudly sporting white and gold striped pajamas. She held up her arms to display the perfect buttoning of her top- Completely unaware of the tension she had just cut like a knife. "See, I did it myself!"

"-that you did!" Battler managed, crouching down to her eye-level to show a humored interest in her outfit. "Looks perfect. But, hmm… Should I go and see if you tore apart your mom's suitcase to find them? I wonder what that room looks like now-"

"I didn't! Hey-"

Battler snickered as Ange grabbed his arm, trying to stop his slow rise and move towards the door. Yeah, he fell with ease into the levity the role of 'big brother' offered him- Until he heard a quiet voice behind him.

"If you are both well, then I should return to the main house. I was only released to find Ange-sama, so, if you will excuse me."

Battler turned about to see Shannon sliding straight out of a bow into a turn for the stairs, and tight flutter shot from his chest up into his throat, nearly catching his tongue so he couldn't say anything.

 _Nearly_ , but-

"Hey uh, wait-" Shannon stalled, turning obediently back with a neutral, inquiring expression, and he was glad he really _did_ have a good excuse to stop her, because he probably would have never thought of something else beneath that stare. "Would you mind waiting with Ange in the lounge for a bit?" He reached down and pulled at the fabric of his red shirt just above the black vest that covered it. "This is still wet, so I should go change myself- And probably take a shower while I'm at it. Could you maybe wait with her for a bit?"

"…of course," Shannon allowed, bowing her head for a breath before smiling down at the girl who stood with him. "Would that be alright with you, Ange-sama?"

"…" The girl, didn't look exactly like she wanted to agree, but her hesitance was clearly borne not from a dislike for the maid, but from an uncertainty she shot towards her big brother. "You'll come down?"

"Of course!" He ruffled her hair before giving her a light push in Shannon's direction, grinning the whole way. "You just go ahead, I'll be right behind you."

She still looked reluctant, but after a breath Ange burst forward, leading the way down the steps with Shannon right behind her-

As Battler stared after them both, his smile instantly dropping into a troubled frown.

* * *

"…he doesn't remember."

"Did you take all of those round pieces, Maria-chan?"

"Uu— I'm making a red tower! I need the red ones!"

"…he doesn't even know there _is_ something to remember- Even as he speaks of when he left! Even when he looks right at you!"

"Alright, alright- Ange-chan and I'll just make our house with fewer pillars, you keep the red round things- Hey! That's part of our roof!"

"Yeah! Don't take apart our house!"

"But this triangle is red, too!"

"…why am I even here, Shannon? Don't you have your answer, now? What is the point of me being here? Holding onto this? He has returned- It's over. There's nothing to wait for, so why do either of us need these sprouts anymore?!"

"Alright, alright, girls- Maria-chan, you shouldn't take blocks from what someone has already built. I'm sure we can all agree to leave you the rest of the red ones, so we won't use anymore red ones if you leave what we already took in our buildings. Does that work with everyone?"

"Yes…"

"Yes, George-nii-san."

"I suppose…"

"Good, and of course we will promise the same, right Shannon-chan? … _Shannon-chan_?"

"Ah-" Shannon jerked her head up, torn sharply from her inner one-way talk with the distressed witch to find herself- Yes… Yes, she was playing with the cousins in the lounge. They were all on the floor near the sofas, the table pushed aside so that they could play with Ange's construction blocks.

She even still had a yellow piece in her hand, meant to go on the bridge she had been working on with George, and as she looked down at it she realized- She had been holding it for a good minute or so. No one had noticed, with the fight going on over Maria stealing red pieces from Jessica and Ange's house, but, now-

George was looking at her quizzically, and she blushed as she looked down at her lap. "Pardon me, I was elsewhere… Of course, I will save the red pieces for Maria-sama, if she wishes."

"Uu- thank you!"

"Honestly, though," Jessica said with a sigh, replacing the stolen red triangle with a blue one from the shared pile of blocks. "If we were going to do that, we should have seperated the colors from the start. Red, yellow, and blue- It would have divided up perfectly."

"I think your house is coming along nicely with the mixed colors, though," Shannon volunteered, offering a smile that Ange was happy to share, even if Jessica was reluctant to let go of her sore feelings.

"Yes, it is getting taller than you, Ange-chan," George agreed, before shooting an even warmer smile towards Shannon. "We're going to have to work hard if we want to have any hope of winning."

"-yes," Shannon agreed, feeling light with relief as she answered him look for look. Yes, this was what she should be focusing on- What was right in front of her, right then. She might feel bad for the witch, and would need to face her eventually, but for now, she had the joy she had found so recently to treasure… She could worry about lost dreams later.

"Eh? What's going on in here?"

Her mind blanked out at the voice, and everything within twisted- A kaleidoscope of good and bad and ugly things all tumbling together as she schooled her expression into easy welcome and looked up to find an uncertain Battler in the doorway, looking down at them with wet hair and a black t-shirt and baffled eyes. "When did you all get here?"

"You're late!" Maria proclaimed as an answer, even as Ange greeted him with a smile and an explanation.

"They came back a long time ago! You took so long in the shower, we started a contest!"

"Eh?" was all that Battler said, echoing himself as he observed where the cousins and Shannon sat on the floor, blocks spread out around them.

George offered the more detailed answers as he stood to face him. "Grandfather left as soon as dinner was over, with Genji-san, Nanjo-san, Krauss-oji-san, and Rudolf-oji-san, so the rest of our parents excused us and suggested we look for you. Gohda-san even packed some food to bring along, since you and Ange-chan didn't get to eat," he finished as he waved towards the far dining table in the lounge – where a single meal had been set out and already eaten, and a still wrapped bag sat across from it, ready to be unpacked.

"-that so?" Battler ran a hand through his hair as he looked around the room, his expression still surprised, but, oddly touched, too. "Didn't mean to make you all go through so much trouble- I pretty much expected to get called straight back to Grandfather when I ran out- I was shocked when Shannon-chan didn't say he was calling me."

"…I'm afraid it is the opposite," George said, his tone warning enough for all to tense and realize what he would likely say. "He made it clear he didn't want to see you."

Battler… His expression sobered with a harsh suddenness, and he gave a slow, quiet nod as he stared at the food… Unaware of how Shannon was staring at him from behind George's leg, the same weight suddenly in her own stomach.

How… How was he supposed to make up with the master, if he wasn't allowed to even see him?

"-I wouldn't worry about it," Jessica spoke up, forcing a brave smile as they all looked to her. "My dad and yours- They went with him specifically to try and calm him down enough to talk to you- And Genji-san and Nanjo-san went with them. Even if Grandfather won't listen to our dads, he tends to mind what those two say, and they're both clearly for him hearing out your apology."

"-ah." Battler- Looked at her. It was a skimming, fleeting look, gone before Shannon could even think to look away, but it was there- And then he was looking to his cousins again. "I have it on good authority that apologizing for being gone so long won't be enough, anyways."

"Of course not." The answer came from George, so quick and confident that they were all left blinking at him, taken aback. But he was firm, and steady in his stance as he explained, "Grandfather made it clear when he spoke to you- He is angry because you left in the first place."

…it was, exactly, what she had said before. And, just as before, Battler's face clouded with something grim but firm, and the sight made Shannon look away- Focus on further building her bridge.

Focus on hiding her face, as he said _that_ again.

"I get that, but I can't apologize for leaving. It would be like saying I shouldn't have done it- That I regret doing it, and I _don't_."

Shannon squeezed her eyes shut, blocking out the silence of the room, the tears she dared not allow- The sound of the sobs within her heart, echoing up from the witch inside of her.

"Battler-kun… Do you really not understand?"

It was the weary wisdom in George's voice that drew her up more than anything, to slowly, tentatively look up at the man who stood beside her, his gaze grimly set on his younger relative.

… _George, sama?_

"-what?" Battler asked, wary but, truly confused as well.

His older cousin simply shook his head, though, and spoke on without any sign of doubt or reservation. "None of us blame you for why you left, Battler-kun. I think even Grandfather would say what your father did was wrong, and you were right to not go along with it… Even if he doesn't approve of actually rebelling against him."

"-Dad?" Ange said quietly, but Jessica quietly, gently shushed her, and held her back… And Shannon didn't bother to turn and see the girl's expression.

She was too caught, watching the two men speak.

"But I've heard our parents speak of it more than once, when they didn't think I was near, and Jessica-chan and Shannon-chan and I spoke of it many times in the years you were gone."

Battler's gaze swerved towards her when George named her, but whatever Shannon couldn't hide in that sudden attention, she did not witness any mirroring reaction from him- George spoke again, and stole his attention instantly.

"I think most, if not all of us, felt nothing but sympathy for you in the matter… And we've never blamed you for leaving."

Battler opened his mouth to speak, but no words came. It didn't matter, though- The shock and tentative relief and appreciation was clear to see in his face… Until George went on, his voice suddenly dropping low, landing somewhere hard and unbending. "We understand… And we are happy to have you back now, and are willing to let go of the lost years… But, I can't help but sense that you don't really understand what that means to us."

"…what do you mean?" There was a budding defensiveness in Battler's voice, but it quivered over something apprehensive, uncertain of itself, as he frowned back at his cousin.

George stepped forward a few steps, until Shannon couldn't see his face any longer from her angle… But she would have sworn, when she heard the coaxing gentleness of his next words, that his expression must have been soft, even as it was disapproving. "Did you not think it hurt us, when you threw the family away, and turned your backs on us?"

The flabbergasted expression on Battler's face… She saw it only for a breath, and then she had to look down- Had to hide her face, and her eyes.

It was only her good luck- Only an unexpected miracle that Jessica stood up in that moment, or surely they would have noticed.

"He-he's right, Battler," Jessica said, her jump into the conversation tentative, and yet she gained obvious momentum as she stepped around her block house to stand with George. "We're ecstatic to have you back, but we were just as sad to lose you in the first place- Especially when we thought you might never come back."

They were saying it… They were saying everything she had longed to say for years- Everything she had denied.

And she wanted to join them- To cry out her own hurt, to ask _why_ he had done it, why he had come back with smiles instead of the tears of happiness she had always imagined she herself would cry if he truly came back for her…

When, she still had faith, he would come back for her…

Instead she sat there; her head turned down, unseeing as Jessica continued to speak. "I know Granddad acted like he didn't care about feelings back there, but I really think he's just hurt, too- Hurt, and humiliated, because he thinks you don't care about the family, in name or the people in it."

"…I care…"

The defense was weak, confused and lost, and yet there was something sincere in it that prompted Shannon to subtly rub her eyes and dare look up again.

Battler was looking at the floor, his mouth slightly agape as he stared, like he couldn't make sense of it… Like he couldn't make sense of anything.

So he, really hadn't realized the hurt he had caused… Hadn't thought about it.

The two points warred with one another in her heart for dominance, and as the conflict raged, Battler slowly raised his head to look at his cousins. "You don't think that, do you?"

Jessica hesitated a moment too long, while George's reply of "I should think not" was apparently not strong enough for Battler, for he quickly snapped- "Of course I care! It was hard for me, too, I didn't want to leave any of you behind! But, I just didn't…" A hand was at his head, scratching through his hair as he grit his teeth and looked to the floor.

"Onii-chan?"

It was Ange. She had slid around them at some point during the talk, and was at her brother's side, pulling at his hand until he went silent, and looked down into her troubled, but open face. "If Grandfather missed you… Can't you just say, you missed him too, and that you're sorry? For making him worry and wait?"

Battler said nothing, expression open and vulnerable in its distress, but it was clear he was listening, and his quiet call of his sister's name encouraged the girl to babble on, uncertain in her own right. "I know I missed you, and wanted you to come home, before you came back. I was sad, too, when you weren't there."

She… Shannon, could have sworn she saw something shine in Battler's eye. But it was gone in a blink as he reached down to touch his sister's head, running his hand over it a moment as he quietly spoke to her.

"…sorry, Ange-chan." And he looked up- Looked at his cousins, eyes heavy and, oddly shy, as he strove to meet their gaze. "Sorry, Aniki, Jessica… I never really thought how you must have felt about it- That it would matter so much to you."

No, he really hadn't… And it _had_ mattered.

That was probably why neither cousin answered him right away, but still something in the air instantly lightened with his words.

Even she, slowly, began to feel a little lighter… Until-

"Heh heh, it's alright!" Jessica ruffled the back of her head with a laugh, prompting a stain of relief to spread over Battler's face. "I mean, it's not like you forgot about us the entire time- You reached out to us eventually!"

T… That's right… He _had_ eventually contacted his cousins, even when he was still gone…

…contacted, _them_ …

"Yes-" George stepped forward to pat Battler on the shoulder, allowance and welcome in his voice once again. "And the important thing now is just to remember that you _do_ matter to all of us that much, and to think about that when you admit to Grandfather you didn't consider his feelings, and you're sorry for the trouble you caused him."

Battler snorted lightly in answer, but gave a quiet "Yeah, yeah…" as he scratched his neck, looking passed them- Towards Shannon.

She started when she saw his expression cloud, uncertainty covering his face again. She dropped her gaze as her heart hammered with a fear of _what did he see when he looked at_ -

"…what was that I heard about a contest?"

…oh.

"We're building things!" Maria announced, unaware of Shannon right beside her, numbly striving to push back the relief and disappointment running through her. "We're working in teams! George-aniki and Shannon-san are making a bridge, and Ange-chan and Jessica-nee-chan a house! You're supposed to help me make a tower!

"Yeah," Jessica agreed, grinning as she continued the explanation. "We're going to have the parents act as judges when they finally get back- Without telling them who made what, of course. We don't want them to be biased."

"I see! Heh, sorry, Maria- I made you work on ours all on your own, huh?"

"Uu- That's alright!"

"That's good of you, Maria-chan. And will you wait a little longer on getting help?" George asked, turning back to Battler with a light smile. "Gohda-san went to the trouble of packing your food, so you should eat it before it gets too cold."

Shannon's breath instantly caught in her throat. Her hands suddenly felt cold, clammy.

She, she knew she should do it- That it would be strange if she didn't, after helping Ange… But…

No- She squeezed her eyes shut for just a moment, gathered herself, pushed the hurricane within her away, and-

"I will be happy to unpack and serve it for you, Battler-sama."

Everyone turned and looked at her as she rose to her feet with a smile- Battler blinking his surprise.

"What- You don't have to do that."

"If you please," she said with an easy, untroubled bow of her head. "It is my duty- My instructions that came with George-sama were I could stay here until Kumasawa-san arrived to relieve me for the evening, but I was to serve the meal sent here as part of that deal. It wouldn't be right to have a guest eating out of a bag, even under these circumstances."

"-ah," Battler started, but one glance between him and his cousins and he sighed, giving a shrug. "Sure, I guess- If that's what you're supposed to do."

"Thank you." Lifting her head, Shannon focused her smile on George. "Would you be so kind as to take over the bridge construction, George-sama?"

"But of course." They shared a grin, and Shannon moved smoothly away- Following Battler as he moved to take an awkward seat at the table.

All things considered, it went far more smoothly than she could have expected. Battler kept frowning at the table, too caught in his own thoughts after what George had said to say much, or even look up at Shannon. She worked unhindered by any attention, opening the bag, putting out the silverware and plates, and seving the food from their containers- Still warm in her hands, thanks to the fast-thinking chef who packed the meal while it was still hot. There was even a travel tumbler of water and a glass.

It was so simple… She felt so distant from it all. The witch had even retreated from her again, to stand truly separate from her- On the other side of Battler and his chair. She kept glaring tearfully down at him, mumbling things about finally getting it right in all the wrong ways, forgetting _her_ \- But Shannon didn't even feel the need to acknowledge the witch in that moment. She felt surreally proud to have distanced herself from the witch and her feelings. She could truly put the matter aside, and when she was alone, and free to acknowledge Beatrice openly, then surely she could discuss the matter with her from the position of a third-party… An observer, not a participant.

As she moved to finish up the service by pouring the water into the glass, Battler spoke up- So quietly that she had to pause her movements to catch his words.

"Say… Shannon-chan," he glanced up at her out of the corner of his eye, making her freeze completely- Uncertain what she was seeing in his gaze. "Was that what you were holding back when you spoke to me upstairs? What Aniki said about me needing to see that Grandfather was hurt? …that everyone was?"

She, didn't know how to answer that.

It would be a lie to say that that was all that had been in her mind up there, in the hallway, but after a moment of mutual scrutiny, Shannon settled on nodding, and focusing on pouring him a drink as she answered. "I was tempted to say something very similar, yes."

"I see." And, she thought, surely that would be the end of that… But as she moved to put the top back on the tumbler- "-did I cause you that kind of trouble, too?"

Her hand froze on the top, still unscrewed… Her eyes shot open.

"How…" Beatrice breathed, the same dizzy wonder Shannon felt in her own voice… Until it suddenly swirled up in a biting rage. "How can he even dare to _ask_ that?!"

Shannon- Shannon feared that Battler was still talking. Still posing some question she couldn't hear over the ringing in her ears. But when she turned her gaze to him, the truth was much worse.

He was staring right back at her, shocked by whatever he saw in her face.

She swallowed back the tension in her throat, tried to force a smile. "W-what do you-"

"Because-" Battler interrupted, both of their voices barely more than whispers but both strung tight, ready to snap. "When Aniki mentioned you, along with him and Jessica, I thought-"

"It-it's alright, Battler-sama," she managed to get out, trying to shut the tumbler twice before she gave up and put the pieces down, before she dropped it and alerted the others' attention. "I didn't-"

"Of course you did!" called the witch, her voice strained with emotion as she clenched her fists- Clearly wanting to reach out to Battler, even as she knew she couldn't touch him. Couldn't make him look at her. "How, how can he think his actions didn't touch you, too? How shortsighted can he be?"

"And," Battler went on, something steadying in his focus on her that Shannon didn't like- Affirmed her dread that she couldn't back out of this. "I saw you, when Aniki was talking- After he told me what I should say to Grandfather."

 _No_ …

Shannon didn't know what to say… Didn't know how to get out of that scene.

She didn't want to be part of this… She had distanced herself from this! _She had given this up_!

She just- She _ached_ to tell Battler that he had the wrong person. To point at Beatrice and tell him 'she is the one you want' and just _listen_ as they spoke to each other directly!

She didn't- She didn't want to stand there and watch him try to talk to her, as Beatrice tried to talk to him!

"You looked upset- _Look_ upset."

"Of course she looks upset!"

"And, if Aniki and Jessica were upset… You used to play with us, too, back then… You and I used to talk, too."

"How good of you to remember!"

"And I thought you were just talking about Grandfather upstairs, and it still feels kind of vain of me to ask, but… Did I, affect you somehow, too?"

"Of all of the things to ask…"

"Because if I did… Shannon-chan, would, would you look at me? Gah- This hard to say."

"It's hard to _listen_ to, you fool."

"I'm just trying to say that it's like Aniki and Jessica- I didn't _want_ to just leave and not come back. I missed them, and- That applies to you, too…"

"Then why didn't you write me, too?"

"…what?"

…that- didn't make sense.

Shannon, slowly, looked up. Looked up to find that the witch was gone- Had disappeared, and left only Battler…

Battler, staring at her, eyes struck wide.

"What did you say?"

Shannon- Whatever color remained in her face, drained completely. Her hands shook as she realized… As the truth dawned on her.

 _Beatrice_ hadn't said that… _She_ had.


	6. FFN Retirement Notice

**Attention!**

This is just a message to let you know... I am discontinuing use of my Account.

This is not to say I am retiring from writing. Not at all. Just from the website.

And I don't want to bash FFN (it IS where I got my start, after all) but I simply find Archive of Our Own to be an all-around better host for my stories.

Nothing currently up under my name on FFN will be taken down, but this will be the last update to my stories on _this_ site for the foreseeable future.

As such, if you support my stories, or want to catch any future updates, please find me under Phoebe Delos at AO3.

Either way, thank you so much for your readership and time. It's been a blast.

~ Phoebe


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